"You have to take care of your business, sir, or we wouldn't be here," Milligan, 44, a 10-year veteran, tells Poindexter.
Milligan's unit makes an effective crew. But its numbers are dwindling, and the problem it's up against is enormous. There are 51 officers in the unit, down 17 from a year ago. Their mission: tracking down and hauling in 47,000 people who have skipped court or violated probation.
It's not surprising that warrant officers have described their job as "emptying the ocean with a spoon."
To make matters worse, the people they bring in will often simply be released again.
"It's frustrating. It's very frustrating," said Lt. Daniel C. Stefanowicz, 39, the highest-ranking officer on the street that recent night.
"Because you think to yourself, 'How many times do I have to see this guy?' " he said. "I know the prisons are overcrowded. But enough's enough."
David C. Lawrence, the chief administrator for the Philadelphia courts, said that in an "ideal world," he would have enough people to arrest every fugitive.
"It's not an ideal world," he said. "So you prioritize and hope you got it right."
Throughout this recent night, the 10 warrant investigators crisscrossed Philadelphia in a caravan of dark Ford Explorers, ultimately arresting a dozen people charged with or guilty of sexual assault, drunken driving, theft, harassment - and Traffic Court violations.
The unit fields street squads of about this size around the clock.
The budget is about $3 million yearly. But in serving Traffic Court scofflaws, it collected $8 million in back costs and fees last year, more than covering its expenses.
This year, the unit has averaged 98 arrests per officer of criminal fugitives and probation violators. That's a heavy count, and up sharply from the previous year despite a city job freeze that took a toll on staffing.
